08-[Dictated/Action]

[heal_theworld]

[Martel isn't quite sure what to say to him, but she needs to make sure he's all right, even if it does seem if he's ignoring her. She is worried about him. She knows he's still here, he just hasn't been around, and there's a lot of things she needs to tell him.]

...Are you all right? You haven't been around lately at all. You never answered my message earlier this month, either.


[Martel is sitting in the courtyard in a green winter coat she had the Castle magic up for her so she could be outside. Feel free to approach her, though she might be distracted.]

Comments

[heloise]

A self-perpetuating war. [ Said mostly to herself. ] How will you stop it, Martel?

[heal_theworld]

We did. We forced the two countries to sign a peace treaty, after we showed them what the war was doing. [Quietly.] It killed the Great Kharlan Tree.

[heloise]

[ She tries to suppress a smile. ] So it has been stopped.

Will you tell me of the Great Kharlan Tree, Martel?

[heal_theworld]

If you want to hear about it. [She closes her eyes, telling the story as she heard it.] The Great Kharlan Tree was planted by the elves when they came from the comet of Derris-Kharlan, which now orbits my world. When the tree was planted, the first animal, a protozoan, sprung from the earth.

[heloise]

[ She watches Martel as she tells the story, a small smile on her lips. ] So it is the tree of life.

[heal_theworld]

Yes. The tree is the source of all mana on Aselia. Mana is...well, it's a force that all living things have in my world, from the largest dragon to the smallest blade of grass. And when they die, the mana goes back into the atmosphere and to the Great Tree. It's the source of magic, too.

[heloise]

Mana. It must be God's breath of life. [ She is the pope's daughter still. ] That is what we call it in my world.

[heal_theworld]

Maybe it is. [She smiles at her.] In Aselia, humans have mana, but cannot use it. Only elves and those who have elven blood can use mana to cast spells and can feel the mana in the air.

[heloise]

[ She beams at her. ] So you must be like an angel. Angels perform miracles, by the power entrusted to them by God.

[heal_theworld]

...Actually... [Lucrezia is much closer than she thinks she is. Martel actually is an angel, well... an angelic being.] Angels are a bit different in Aselia.

[heloise]

So you have angels and elves. [ That is one awesome world. ]

[heal_theworld]

Yes, we do. But angels are much, much rarer than elves.

[heloise]

I can hardly imagine them kinder than you are though, or more beautiful.

[heal_theworld]

Thank you, Lucrezia. [She smiles.] Though angels are as beautiful as they are. In my world, angels are made when a person put on a special crystal. It can be dangerous, though, if the crystal is not placed on a special mount and put directly to the skin.

[heloise]

[ She furrows her brows. ] Then, angels are--humans enhanced with a crystal? What is the danger?

[heal_theworld]

Humans or half-elves... Or maybe even elves. The crystals make you strong, make your eyesight and hearing better, lets you heal faster, and give you wings. But without a crest, they will also start feeding on you. They'll take away your appetite, your sense of touch, your voice, and eventually your soul.

[heloise]

It sounds like a deal with the Devil. [ And not at all like angels. Martel seems much closer to it. ] I am glad you are half-elven and not an angel.

[heal_theworld]

The devil...? [Well...she is. But she's not about to tell Lucrezia that.] The side effects go away if you have a special crest put between the crystal and your skin, while the good ones stay.

[heloise]

[ And she may not have said that if she knew. ] And when you take the crystal, do you go back to being what you were before?

[heal_theworld]

As far as I know, yes. Though... if you die with the crystal on the crystal will carry your consciousness and soul. They say... that the crystals are alive. Lifeless Beings, they call them. They are so lonely... that when they are put on a person they start leeching away their life in a effort to be closer.

...But I'm not entirely sure if that last part is true.

[heloise]

I thought I would never find it in my heart to pity stones. [ Though she would still try to separate Martel from it if she knew. It sounds positively like a curse. ]

[heal_theworld]

[Which is why she is not telling her about it. She still needs it, in a way, and she has grown used to it. She also went through a lot of strife to keep it.]

I've only heard this. I don't actually know if they are alive.

[heloise]

It would be better if they are not. [ Easier. ]

[heal_theworld]

Maybe. Maybe it wouldn't be. I think... how the user uses their crystal is just as important as the crystal itself.